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? [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > If I wanted to take a picture where the sun is low on the horizon and clearly > visible in the scene (e.g. early morning westbound coming out of the sun), > which Nikon piece of glass would minimize internal reflections, flare, etc.: > > Nikon 50mm f1.8? > Nikon 50mm f1.4? I can only try to answer your question on these lenses with a certain amount of speculation as I have not personally used the 1.4 but I have done a fair amount of inquiry into the various models and generations of Nikon's 50mm lenses. To generalize,? Nikon's 1.8 lens design is very good and quite sharp at most apertures.? Where 50mm lens design gets a little tricky is when a lens is designed to gather more light in low light situations, i.e., the 1.4 lenses. Pointing this lens into the sun is not particularly what it was? designed to do. If you don't need the low-light capabilities of? a 1.4 lens, you are generally better off with the slower lens, i.e., the 1.8 lens, in most shooting situations.? The other important factor in reducing flare when including a point source of light in your photograph is the quality of the coating applied to the front lens element.? One of the main functions of the lens coating is to improve lens contrast and reduce flare problems.? The coating is that purple or greenish sheen you can see on the front of your lens when looking obliquely across the lens surface.? For the coating to do it's best job, your lens needs to be clean (dirt scatters light) and a very major point that should be apparent here is, for gosh sake, don't have a filter on the lens or you are asking for big flare problems in the scenario you describe.? The short answer: IMO, use the 1.8 Disclaimer: For all you Nikon 50/1.4 users, I'm not saying it isn't a good lens!? I'm just trying to address James' particular usage question. B."Moose" Peterson, in the "Nikon System Handbook", says "The 50f1.4 AF is the best of the [Nikon] 50f1.4 designs to date.? Extremely bright and sharp, it's an excellent choice to include in any camera bag....The optical quality is of Nikon's legendary standards." Mike Gardner Ashford, CT P.S. just like your mother told you, use caution looking directly into the sun. ======================================================= -> SPORRS: 'Serious Photographers Of Railroad Related Subjects' -> Web Site: http://www.anet-stl.com/acphotog/sporrs/ -> Message ? 1998 SPORRS? - All Rights Reserved =======================================================
